To Change a Life
by truthseeker97
Summary: Depressed, self harmer Sam has little hope of ever being happy again. The Doctor, despite the stern and fierce exterior, really is a good man underneath. He does his best. But can his best ever be good enough? Can he help to change a life that is falling apart? Slight trigger warning for mentions of self harm/ cutting. 12th Doctor fic! (Set after Kill the Moon.)


**Author's note- This is just a little one-shot that I made. Please read and leave a little review!**

**Triggers for mentions of self-harm.**

To Change a Life

Despite the warmth of the spring day, the leaves on the trees rustled with the odd breeze that was cold enough to warrant a jacket. The sky itself was a brilliant blue and nearly cloudless, the sun cast its heat on the earth that orbited it. It was, in effect, any other normal spring day to the human race. But for Sam, it was another day laced with a miserable grey. She would often look and observe the other teenagers hanging out with each other, laughing and smiling- and the very notion of being happy seemed foreign to her. Sam was by no means a popular person- she tended to keep to herself both inside and outside the classroom. Being sixteen, and in her last year of school, she'd made even less of an effort with socialisation considering the stress she was under due to her upcoming exams. The stress affected her, quite badly too, but then again, she'd never really been able to cope. Sam had a good home life- that much was certain- with parents who were loving and understanding, but it was just the chemicals in her brain that didn't seem to go well. Diagnosed with depression and shoved into therapy a year ago meant that Sam was obviously not very happy. Ever since her parents found out about her self harm, they'd forced her to go into counselling- they'd shouted initially… a lot… but after a while, after consideration, they'd realised it wasn't good to shout and instead, they'd tried their very best to be more understanding. It was a relief in some ways that they knew- but in others not so much- Sam just wished she'd hidden it a little better. For about two years now she'd been cutting her arms and legs, it started off as just small scratches- but had slowly escalated. Truthfully, there wasn't always a reason behind it- habit maybe, but it calmed the emotions that threatened to overwhelm her. It kept her sane.

It was definitely school that affected her most though. Coal Hill was generally a decent school with good, kind teachers. The kids on the other hand weren't always so friendly. It wasn't that they were horrible to her face, but it was more that they tended to ignore Sam completely- and being ignored was far worse than being called names. Lunchtime was normal on that warm day, lonely, isolated and incredibly saddening. Sam tended to skip lunch, finding that it made her feel ill, and she would often find a quiet corner of the school to sit and read. Usually, the caretaker would let her stay in his quarters- a reasonably large shed type building slightly away from the main body of the school. The caretaker would let her sit on one of the chairs and they would keep to themselves after the usual polite greetings- a sort of silent agreement was between them, as long as Sam respected him, the caretaker would let her stay of a lunchtime- no questions asked. Sam supposed that he used to do a similar thing as a child himself- so understood her reasons- and regardless, the teenager was grateful. However, for the past few days she'd avoided going into the caretaker's quarters. The usual caretaker was away- and a new one had come in to replace him. This new caretaker was… strange to say the least. He had a fierce look to him and generally (like the other caretaker) kept to himself. His hair was multiple shades of grey and he was tall with a lean body. So, to not disturb this new man- who was apparently called Mr Smith- Sam had instead sat on one of the benches in the bustling playground of a lunchtime. Her dark fringe blew into her eyes, and she nervously swept it to the side as she saw a group of girls glance over towards her, smirks on their young faces. She took out a book and busied herself reading it, unaware of the fact that the group of girls- who were in her class- had stalked towards her. Suddenly, the book was snatched from her hands.

"What is this you're reading freak?" One of the girls asked, her voice sickeningly sweet.

"If you read the cover you would notice it's called Wintergirls." Sam muttered back.

"It's about… eating disorders?" The girls raised their eyebrows and sneered at Sam in disgust.

"Problem? It's a good book." Sam defended herself.

"I was mistaken, you're more than a freak reading something like this," A blonde girl made a face of disgust.

"If you're just going to insult me feel free to leave," Sam said through gritted teeth.

"How dare you!" The girl holding the book exclaimed as she shoved the novel roughly into Sam's face, her fist breaking through, slightly hitting Sam's face. She gasped in pain, as the fist connected with her cheekbone. "Worthless," One of them mumbled as they stalked off.

This was why Sam tended to avoid spending her break times in the playground.

With a sniff, she stood up and made her way towards the caretaker's cabin. She had nowhere else to go, so she just hoped he wouldn't mind her intruding. It wasn't that she was overly bothered by what the girls had said, it was just the fact that of all people, they had to pick on her, and it upset her. Tentatively, Sam knocked on the wooden door. After a moment she'd heard a gruff voice say:

"What do you want?" She took that as a sign to go on. Quietly, Sam opened the door, shutting it behind her. Mr Smith- the caretaker- strode out of the back room in clothes that weren't was he had been wearing for the past week. Instead of donning the brown overalls, he was wearing a white shirt, and a black waistcoat with a long black coat lined with a bright red on top- he was wearing black trousers a black doc martin style boots and his expression was stern with a frown.

"Sorry to disturb you," Sam started, "I was just wondering if I could sit in here for lunchtime? I usually do with the other caretaker, but I wasn't sure if you'd let me…"

"Why don't you want to be outside with other humans?" He asked in a Scottish accent, his voice annoyed.

"Because those other humans don't like me. In fact I've just been called… worthless by them…" Her voice choked and, feeling humiliated, she turned to leave.

"Hang on," She heard him say before he grabbed her upper arm.

"No it's fine, I didn't expect you to want me here," Sam shook her head turning to look at him, "I mean, I spent every lunchtime with the caretaker who was here before you. People just… don't like me."

"Look…"

"I don't want your pity," Sam said calmly, "I can take care of myself, and I don't need those others out in the playground to make me feel good about myself or anything. I'm sorry; I shouldn't have disturbed you…" Sam made to leave but Mr Smith kept his grip tight.

"Come on," He said simply, nodding in the direction of the back room. A little reluctantly, Sam followed him. He gestured sharply to a chair, in which Sam proceeded to sit, watching as the Scottish sounding man took up another seat directly in front of her.

"There's something about you," He put a hand to his face as he eyed her, "How old are you?"

"Sixteen."

"Have a name?"

"Sam." She replied. Suddenly remembering her earlier observation, "Are you leaving? You're in your normal clothes."

"Your regular caretaker should be back soon." He muttered, "Yes, I am leaving."

"Why?"

"I'm not a caretaker." At this, Sam raised an eyebrow.

"Mr Smith…" She started, but he interrupted her.

"You can call me the Doctor," He told her, "That's my actual name."

"Okay, well, Doctor, why is there a blue police box in here?" She nodded towards the wall where the box dominated, its lights on, looking rather out of place in a school caretaker's cabin.

"Oh… that's my home." He said nonchalantly.

"Are you going to explain?" Sam asked, smirking.

"Nope, I have some questions for you." He took her silence as a prompt to carry on "You have depression, am I right?" Sam looked at him in surprise, feeling her stomach drop a little as adrenaline flushed through her at this statement.

"How… how did you know?" Sam frowned.

"Your eyes," The Doctor's harsh voice had softened slightly, "They're sad despite your happy exterior."

"Just by my eyes?" Sam furrowed her brow- the Doctor just waved his hand impatiently as though he wasn't going to fully explain himself.

"Are you going to roll up your sleeves?" He asked quietly.

"Why?"

"Ever since I mentioned depression you immediately pulled up your sleeves and have been gripping them firmly above your wrist ever since." His eyes became gentler, "I'm not an idiot."

"How could you possibly know?"

"You're not the first person I've seen to do it." He told her softly, "Not that I've actually spoken to anyone about it before." There was a pause, "Show me."

"Why would you want to see?"

"Show me." He asked again- but it was more of a command.

With a heavy sigh, Sam rolled up her sleeves, baring her arms to the Doctor. With ancient, icy blue eyes he looked. He looked at the rows of silver scars and angry red cuts that stood out against her once unmarred skin. Row upon row of pain and sadness, etched forevermore into the fragile, pale skin of the young girl. In that instant, the Doctor made a decision.

"To answer a few of your questions," He said conversationally, "That police box is my TARDIS- which stands for time and relative dimension in space. In short, I am a time traveller from a planet called Gallifrey. To you I am an alien- my species are called Time Lords. I came to this school and posed as a caretaker to get rid of an alien that threatened you lot and for the millionth time I saved earth." He took a breath, smiling slightly at her calm expression. "Fancy a trip in my TARDIS?"

"Are you serious?" Sam looked at him in absolute disbelief. The Doctor didn't bother replying as he stood up, clicking his fingers once, the TARDIS door swung open and he made a grand sweeping gesture.

"Welcome aboard." He said. Sam stood, leaving her schoolbag in the cabin as she stepped inside the TARDIS.

"It's bigger on the inside," She commented.

"I never tire of hearing that," The Doctor said in his Scottish accent, a smirk evident in his voice. As Sam moved further into the huge room, she heard the alien Time Lord shut the door behind them. Up the steps they walked. Sam looked all around her in pure amazement, finding it hard to believe what she was looking at. The Doctor moved past her to fiddle with some buttons and levers on what must have been the control panel.

"This is ridiculous," Sam muttered, shaking her head and letting a laugh slip past her lips.

"So, where would you like to go? All of time and space, where do you fancy?" The Doctor asked, his eyes alight as he clasped his hands together.

"Umm…" Sam had no idea. "I think you should decide- considering you're the time traveller."

"Great choice," The Doctor grinned as he ran one slender hand through his salt and pepper hair. He mumbled to himself for a few moments, pressing various buttons, suddenly, he spoke out loud and turned to look at Sam, "How about Vasetonia? It's quite a nice planet. The people there are very friendly. They are light blue in colour, with patches of dark blue depending on the individual- they're like some sort of aqua creature. But Vasetonia itself is famous for its backwards flowing waterfalls and forests rich in various creatures and plants. It's a beautiful planet really."

"Let's go there then!" Sam said laughing at his enthusiasm.

After the Doctor slammed down one final lever, the TARDIS made a groaning sound before rumbling. The movement of the blue police box caused Sam to be thrown around, she clutched at the railing, holding on for dear life but laughing all the same. The Doctor on the other hand grinned at her, the red lining of his black coat flaring as the whirring sound continued. After a few minutes, the TARDIS seemed to have landed and the endearing groaning sound quietened to silence.

"Are you ready?" The Doctor came beside her, his face fierce looking but kind at the same time.

"Definitely," Sam smiled with excitement.

The Time Lord led the way out of the TARDIS, and once they had exited, Sam came to walk beside him. She gasped at the new world around her. They had landed just outside a forest, and were currently facing a waterfall. But this wasn't any ordinary waterfall. It was flowing backwards. The brilliant, glistening blue water made a comforting trickling sound as it flowed upwards towards the top of the brown and green cliff. Blue creatures about six foot tall walked around on blue feet where the toes were webbed- like their hands. Looking up at the sky, Sam could see a giant moon, with a smaller moon in front of it.

"Wow." She said. The Doctor smirked and took her to the water's edge, to where it began to flow upwards.

"Touch it." He said as he took her hand, encouraging her to feel the water. As the liquid first made contact with her fingers, she giggled, but looked on in amazement, finding it a weird feel for it to be going upwards instead of downwards. "Shall we explore the forest?" The Doctor suggested. With a grin on her young face, Sam nodded her head.

Vasetonia was amazing- to say the least. The forest was full of small creatures. Grey, fluffy creatures that resembled cats scampered around through the bushes and long grass, while a deep blue insect creature, with something that resembled helicopter blades on full power on top of its head, floated around the forest, the blades casting a purple glow. Up ahead was a clearing, with a single tree in the middle. The tree itself was enormous, wide and tall, its trunk was twisted over and was coloured a light brown. The tree's branches weren't visible- as its flowers resembling blossom drooped all around, thick enough to cover a lot of the tree. The blossom was a mix of light blue, pink and light purple, and the tree itself as a whole resembled a mix between a weeping willow and a blossom tree. The Doctor sat down underneath the shade of the tree and Sam followed suit, sitting beside him.

"I can't believe you get to do this whenever you want." Sam whispered, still in awe.

"It's nicer travelling with someone else. I've been to these places many times, so it's nice to take others here." He replied. "Usually I take Clara, but she's been busy."

"Clara?" Sam frowned, "As in, Miss Oswald?"

"Yeah, her." He muttered.

"Why take me then?" Sam asked, curious.

"Because…" The Doctor seemed to consider his words, "I think you've stopped seeing the beauty in your world. Granted, it is a little dull in your little human lives, but! There is more out there. I guess, I wanted to show you that there is more to life than what you have now. Depression can't be easy. I'm not asking you to stop self-harming to be happier; I just thought it would be nice to show you just how good life can be." He frowned, "I'm not sure if that was rude or not…"

"Thank you," Sam whispered, stopping the tears from falling. She leaned over to hug him gently. From beneath her, she could feel his arms flailing.

"Not the hugging type," He grumbled. Sam just laughed, letting him go.

After spending a few hours on Vasetonia, they headed back to the TARDIS.

"We best be getting back," The Doctor said as he pressed random buttons and pulled some levers. He started walking over to Sam as the TARDIS took off, but a crash made them both stare at the console in worry.

"What's going on?" Sam asked, concerned.

"I have no idea." The Doctor frowned as he walked back towards the console. But another heavy crash caused him to fall, and he had to grab onto the railing to stop himself from falling. "We're crashing if you haven't already guessed." He yelled over the noise, worry in his voice. Suddenly, with a final, loud groan, the TARDIS landed with one last bump and steam seemed to emanate from beneath the unit. "Well this isn't earth," The Scottish sounding man grumbled, as he glanced at the console. "I think something is wrong with the TARDIS…" His voice trailed off as the TARDIS made that groaning sound again. Without warning, the box around them started to fade, once… twice… three times before completely disappearing.

"No, no no!" The Doctor yelled as his hands gripped the air instead of the console unit. He looked around him, annoyed. "She's gone. The TARDIS has gone." He turned to where Sam stood, looking worried. "There was a malfunction with the date reader thing."

"Date reader thing?" Sam frowned.

"You know… the thing that displays the date and time period you're in." He span around, running his hands through his hair, "She must have left us and disappeared to repair it. God knows when she'll turn up."

"Where are we?" Sam queried. Both of them took a good look at their surroundings.

They were in what appeared to be a desert, and there was no-one around. The landscape was barren and golden and to one side was a cliffy slope that levelled out at the top. From their position on the ground, they couldn't see much.

"Let's head up there," The Doctor pointed towards the slope.

"It's boiling," the teenager whispered, taking her blazer off. They walked in general silence, although the Doctor was muttering to himself, clearly angry at the TARDIS for leaving them. About halfway up the cliff, Sam stopped, breathing deeply and rapidly.

"Doctor…" Her voice was quiet, "I don't feel well."

"Not far now, come on," He said.

"Doctor…" Sam groaned as her head span, feeling ill and exhausted and dehydrated.

"Come on Sam, nearly there," The Time Lord, took her hand, helping her up the last few rocks. The teenager collapsed on the sandy ground in utter exhaustion. The Doctor sat beside her, looking out to the expanse of nothing but sand before them.

"Are you okay Sam?" He asked softly, his Scottish accent gentle sounding. Sam could do little more than shake her head and wince as she tried to sit up, but failing, her arms gave way. The Doctor caught her before she could fall. Sam moved so her head was in the Doctor's lap, her hands gripping his trousers. "What's wrong?"

"Feel ill…" She gasped.

"You're dehydrated," He murmured- more to himself, "Have you had much to drink today." She shook her head 'no'. That wasn't a good thing when you were in a hot desert. "I'm sorry Sam, but there's nothing I can do right now without my TARDIS."

"Does that mean I'll die?" She whispered.

"No," The Doctor said quietly.

They were silent for a while.

"You know," The Doctor said, breaking the silence, "I'm scared. Not right now, but in general. I worry, what if no-one likes me, what if Clara suddenly just… hates me. I don't show it but I do worry what she thinks of me. I shouldn't be alone. I'm not… good on my own. I've made many bad decisions in my life time and have done many bad things." He sighed, "I try so hard to do the right thing. I save species and lives over and over again. I make countless decisions all on my own, I determine the fate of worlds all on my own. Sometimes… just sometimes I wished others could make their own choices for the fate of their world." He smiled, "But then I'd be out of a job." He placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. "I once killed my own people." His voice was low and quiet, "And I once stopped myself from killing my own people. But in that time when I did kill them, I was also depressed in a way. I felt a numbness, a sadness so great at what I had done. And I felt that for centuries." He looked down at Sam, his talking keeping her on the brink of consciousness, "So I do understand how you feel, in a way. I have many faces, many lives. But I'm not the young man Clara once loved. I've changed. I think she tries to see me, tries to see that I am the same man she fell for. But, I know I'm too different. My personality changes as well as my face with each regeneration, to her, I must seem like a completely different person. And I wonder, if she'll ever accept me for the man I am now." He paused again, thinking. "Clara saved the moon yesterday, with Courtney, that girl. And she resents me. She resents me greatly for leaving her; for leaving her to make the decision on whether to save the moon… or kill it. She opted to save it, but I left her while she made that decision. You know… I thought that she needed freedom to make her own choices- I already make enough choices for mankind as it is. She hated making that big decision. But then again, I can't be around all the time to make the big decisions for her." He stopped again for a breath. "And there's a part of me that regrets making her hate me- but I think what I did was right. Even so… I can't always get things right. I'm not a hero."

"Doctor," Sam looked up at him. But she looked ill, she looked very ill. Within a second, her eyes had rolled back and she was lying unconscious.

At that exact moment, the groaning sound of the TARDIS appeared behind them. Carrying Sam in his arms, the Doctor ran towards his blue box.

"Ah, you're back girl," he said to the TARDIS affectionately as he entered. Dashing to the medical bay, he took out a needle which he roughly jabbed into Sam's upper arm, causing her body to regain its normal water levels.

After an hour or so, Sam started to wake up. Feeling panicked, she immediately tried to sit up, but a slender hand pushed her back down.

"Hey now, take it easy," the Doctor warned. He was sitting in a chair beside her.

"What happened?"

"You fainted, then the TARDIS appeared and now you're in my medical bay," The Time Lord explained.

"Where are we now?"

"In the time vortex just floating." The Doctor helped her up to a sitting position and gave her a glass of water, that she drunk gratefully.

The Doctor let Sam rest for a while, but eventually, Sam felt good enough to stand, so she wandered out of the medical bay. Through a couple of different corridors she walked until coming back to the familiar control room, where she saw the Doctor reading. Upon hearing her arrival, he slammed the book shut and jogged down the steps.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"Better, thanks," She smiled.

"Well, we've landed back at Coal Hill school," the Doctor said, "I thought we may as well land somewhere. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm really good actually," Sam gave him a grin. She paused, "I wanted to say thank you for today. Seeing a whole new planet, full of new things and wondrous beauty really moved me. I'll admit I was losing a lot of faith in myself and in the world around me, and I think you've restored that faith. And I think you've restored some of my happiness too." She ran a hand through her hair, "Even that accidental trip to a desert helped. Hearing your musings, your inner thoughts… I was comforted by it in a strange way. And I thank you for sharing that with me."

"It was my pleasure," the Doctor gave her a rare smile. Sam made to walk towards the door but the Doctor stopped her. "Hang on." He took a breath, "Come here." Sam made her way to sit on the steps beside him.

"What's up?"

"This," he held out a single, small, white tub in his hand; the lid was off revealing the light blue gel inside.

"What's that?" Sam frowned.

"I wanted to give it to you." He mumbled. "I told you I wasn't going to ask you or force you to stop self-harming, but I did want to give you this." The Doctor looked into her eyes, "This gel here will cause all scars and cuts to disappear." He paused, "And I know how… upsetting and painful the constant reminder can be. So, if you want, when you're ready, put this on them. If you never use it, I can also understand. But if you do, then that's fine also. Either way I respect your bravery."

There was a moment's silence.

"I want to put it on now."

"I'm sorry?"

"I want to put it on now." Sam repeated.

"I didn't want to pressure you into anything."

"You haven't."

"Sam, this is a big decision to make." He said gently.

"And I'm ready." She looked up at him with bright eyes, "I've spent a couple of years now, stuck in this endless loop, this… endless cycle of depression and cutting. Before now, I don't think I've felt like I've had a reason to stop. After today, I just feel, happy. I felt awe and I felt wonder and I felt okay, and I haven't felt okay in a long time." She sighed, "I've tried stopping before, but I've always relapsed, maybe because I wasn't ready. But this time... This time I feel okay. This time, I want to stop." She smiled. "Everyone has to make big and difficult decisions and choices. You haven't forced me to make one. I'm making this decision on my own."

The Doctor smiled at her, his eyes softening. He held out the tub to her. But Sam shook her head. Instead, she held her bare arms out.

"I want you to do it." She looked at him. "You changed my life."

"And you're sure?" He asked one last time with a hint of a smile.

"Positive."

He rubbed the cool gel onto both of her arms, all over each individual cut and scar. His fingers were gentle and soothing, and Sam relaxed into his touch, watching as he worked. One by one, slowly, the scars and cuts started to fade. It was like in the same way the TARDIS vanished, first slowly, then all at once. All the reminders of her pain and sorrow started to disappear. What she thought was on her skin forever was starting to leave, and no trace was left of it on her now perfect, smooth, unmarred skin. The Doctor watched once he had finished, finding great joy in the healing of her arms. The last scar stayed for a while, before it too, started to fade, slower than the others, before vanishing altogether.

"Thank you," Sam whispered, feeling overwhelmed.

"Believe me when I say it was my absolute pleasure," The Doctor told her, while a warm smile.

They both stood up.

Sam threw her arms around the Doctor's neck, drawing him in to a tight hug. The Doctor hesitated before returning the hug, knowing that it meant a lot to both of them. They embraced for a while, for what felt like forever.

"Thank you." Sam said again.

Sam knew that she probably wouldn't be seeing the Doctor again, and her heart sank at that thought. But she was lucky to have met him. She hadn't cut since. And her arms remained clean. It was a miracle, truly. She knew it was virtually impossible to just stop self-harming like that, but she had the willpower and she stuck through it. She did it for herself, but she also did it for the Doctor. Knowing the struggles he had gone through, and seeing that he'd become a good man through the process had inspired her. If she could get through her own struggles, then she too could one day become a good person.

Every now and then she thought she heard the familiar groan of the TARDIS at night time. And it was easy to say that she never did forget the Doctor. Sometimes, at night, just as she was falling asleep, she would swear she could hear his Scottish accent lull her to sleep, into a world of dreams of the Doctor. And it comforted her. She knew she could make it.

Likewise, the Doctor often would think about Sam. And more often than he should, he found himself parking the TARDIS outside her house or even in her room if she was home alone. The Time Lord would sit, watching her sleep. And he would check her arms. But whenever he checked them, nothing but unscarred, pale skin looked back at him. She had kept her promise. And it made him smile to think that he was able to change a life for the better. He wasn't sure why he had done it. Maybe because he wished that someone had helped him all throughout that Time War, and when he did get the help, it made his life, his whole being so much better. So maybe, he didn't want Sam to have fought this battle with no help.

Sometimes, he would touch her forehead with a soft, slim finger and whisper:

"Sadness doesn't make you cowardly or weak. It can make you strong and brave. And you have been so brave Sam… so brave."

And he would give her dreams of him and her together in the TARDIS visiting places that really existed.

Seventy years in the future from that point, the Doctor once found himself. The TARDIS had ignored where he wanted to go and instead brought him to a bungalow in a quiet part of a small town. With a groan, the box landed, and the Doctor stepped out into a room.

"Doctor." An elderly, tired voice said his name. Looking over to the corner of the room, in a comfortable looking chair, the alien saw a white haired woman, lines on her face but eyes that echoed youth. "Well you haven't changed a bit." There was silence.

"Sam…" his eyes widened in realisation.

"Doctor…" She said back. The Doctor moved slowly in disbelief towards her, taking her wrinkled hand in his with a gentle touch.

"The TARDIS brought me here, I don't know why." He frowned.

"I've been waiting a long time to see you again. I thought I never would." Sam said. "I used to dream about you all the time." A ghost of a smile flickered across her face. "And I'm still clean." Feebly, she held out her arms to him.

"I'm proud of your bravery," he said honestly. "But why am I here?"

"I'm dying Doctor," Sam said bluntly, and yet, a smile graced her old face. The Doctor frowned. "If I can ask one last thing of you… would you do it?"

"Of course."

"Take me to Vasetonia."

He helped her out of the TARDIS and together, once again, they sat underneath that grand tree in the middle of that magical clearing. The little creatures and insects danced around them.

"Thank you Doctor."

"For what?" His voice was quiet.

"For all you did for me." Her voice was becoming slower, more tired sounding, "You made my early day's happy ones. And now, you've made my final days the best." She smiled up at him, her hands shaking slightly. He took her hands in his, rubbing his thumb over the skin. "I don't have any family left." She started again, quietly, "But you have always been my family, my friend." She touched the Doctor's face once, "Thank you Doctor. You made me okay again."

Sam died peacefully in his arms, a smile on her old face, but in her passing, a youthful look seemed to grow in her smile.

The Doctor buried her underneath that tree. And for many years to come, he would visit her. He had a headstone made for her, with a statue of the tree she was buried under on top of it. The headstone read:

Here rests Sam

The bravest girl I met one fateful day

You made a great decision

And now things, I hope forevermore, will be okay


End file.
